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Costume Design for a Production of The Coast of Illyria THESIS Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Fine Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Rebekah Elisabeth Priebe Graduate Program in Theatre The Ohio State University 2016 Master's Examination Committee: Associate Professor Kristine Kearney, Advisor Associate Professor Jennifer Schlueter Assistant Professor Shilarna Stokes Professor Mary Tarantino
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Costume Design for a Production of The Coast of Illyria

May 13, 2023

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Page 1: Costume Design for a Production of The Coast of Illyria

Costume Design for a Production of The Coast of Illyria

THESIS

Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Fine Artsin the Graduate School of The Ohio State University

By

Rebekah Elisabeth Priebe

Graduate Program in Theatre

The Ohio State University

2016

Master's Examination Committee:

Associate Professor Kristine Kearney, Advisor

Associate Professor Jennifer Schlueter

Assistant Professor Shilarna Stokes

Professor Mary Tarantino

Page 2: Costume Design for a Production of The Coast of Illyria

Copyrighted by

Rebekah Elisabeth Priebe

2016

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Abstract

For the completion of my Master of Fine Arts degree in Costume Design, I

designed the costumes for the theatrical production of The Coast of Illyria by Dorothy

Parker and Ross Evans, adapted by Jennifer Schlueter and Cece Bellomy. The

production was performed in April 2016 in the Thurber Theatre in the Drake

Performance and Event Center and was directed by Shilarna Stokes. The play is set in

the early 1800s and uses historical literary figures such as Charles Lamb, Mary Lamb,

and Samuel Taylor Coleridge as some of the characters. Due to the nature of the play, I

researched the time period as well as the people present as characters in order to give an

accurate representation. Because these are not contemporary figures, it is still vital to give

the audience a believable image of these well-known British Romantic writers. While

some audience members might be familiar with these writers and some might not, I

strove to provide a snapshot of each character to enhance the audience’s knowledge.

Another challenge that was presented by this play is showing the mental, physical, and

emotional decline of Charles Lamb, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Mary Lamb. This

change occurs between Acts Two and Three, giving the actors a limited amount of time

to make a complete physical change. I worked with the director to use the costumes and

makeup to develop the look of a person in a declining state. All of the elements together

informed the design of my costumes to create a cohesive, time-period conscious design,

while staying true to the nature of the characters.

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Acknowledgments

Thank you to all the professors and mentors who helped guide me through the years.

Each one of you has shaped who I am today, and each of you has made an impact on me

as a costume designer, theatre artist, and an individual.

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Vita

2004................................................................Trinity Academy

2009................................................................B.A. English/Drama, Friends University

2013................................................................M.A. Theatre, Kansas State University

2013 to present ..............................................Graduate Teaching Associate, Department

of Theatre, The Ohio State University

Production History

2014................................................................The Rape of Lucretia – Costume Designer,

OSU School of Music

2015................................................................Trouble in Mind – Costume Designer,

OSU Department of Theatre

2015................................................................Richard II – Costume Consultant,

OSU Department of English

2015................................................................Dance Downtown – “18 Beginnings,” “Let’s

Make Climate Change?,” and “Orbs” –

Costume Designer, OSU Department of

Dance

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2016................................................................The Coast of Illyria – Costume Designer,

OSU Department of Theatre

Fields of Study

Major Field: Theatre

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Table of Contents

Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii

Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................. iii

Vita..................................................................................................................................... iv

Table of Contents............................................................................................................... vi

List of Figures .................................................................................................................. viii

Chapter 1: The Producing Situation................................................................................... 1

Chapter 2: The Producing Concept and Design Scheme.................................................... 5

Chapter 3: Character Analysis .......................................................................................... 27

Chapter 4: The Process ..................................................................................................... 35

Chapter 5: An Evaluation of the Design ........................................................................... 60

References......................................................................................................................... 64

Appendix A: Director’s Concept ...................................................................................... 65

Appendix B: Costume Plot ............................................................................................... 71

Appendix C: Costume Budget Estimates.......................................................................... 73

Appendix D: Research and Preliminary Sketches ............................................................ 78

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Appendix E: Final Renderings.......................................................................................... 99

Appendix F: Production Photos ...................................................................................... 115

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List of Figures

Figure 1. The Assuaging the Waters by John Martin........................................................ 16

Figure 2. A portrait of Charles Lamb from The Charles Lamb Society........................... 18

Figure 3. A portrait of Fanny Kelly .................................................................................. 20

Figure 4. Portrait of George Beau Brummel by Robert Dighton ..................................... 22

Figure 5. Progress of the Toilet by James Gillray ............................................................ 23

Figure 6. Self portrait of William Hazlitt.......................................................................... 25

Figure 7. A Young Peasant Boy by Jean-Baptiste Greuze ............................................... 26

Figure 8. Green silk self-striped spencer: 19th century from the Museum of London..... 45

Figure 9. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 1 ................................................ 66

Figure 10. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 2 .............................................. 67

Figure 11. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 3 .............................................. 68

Figure 12. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 4 .............................................. 69

Figure 13. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 5 .............................................. 70

Figure 14. Costume Plot ................................................................................................... 72

Figure 15. Research for Charles: A Allan Melville by John Rubens Smith, B Men's

Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1812, C Portrait of Charles Lamb from The Charles

Lamb Society .................................................................................................................... 79

Figure 16. Charles Preliminary Design............................................................................. 80

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Figure 17. Research for Mary: A Woman's Dress c. 1805-1810 from Philadelphia

Museum of Art, B A Woman with Two Children Wearing Kashmir Paisley Shawls by

Alfred Edward 1815-1820, C Maria Shaum by Jacob Eicholtz, D Morning Dress 1810-20

from the Metropolitan Muse ............................................................................................. 81

Figure 18. Mary Preliminary Design ................................................................................ 82

Figure 19. Research for Fanny: A Portrait of a lady wearing a Kashmir Shawl, B 1810

La Mode Illustree, C 1818 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 6 - September Issue, D

Portrait of Fanny Kelly ..................................................................................................... 83

Figure 20. Fanny Preliminary Design............................................................................... 84

Figure 21. Research for Mrs. Kelly: A Portrait of a Lady by Louis-Leopold Boily, B

Fashion Plate depicting Afternoon Dress for 1800 located at Scripps College, C Fashion

Plate depicting Evening Dresses, 1810 located at Scripps College, D Portrait de Femme

en Robe by Francois-Joseph Kinson ................................................................................. 85

Figure 22. Mrs. Kelly Preliminary Design........................................................................ 86

Figure 23. Research for Dyer: A Portrait of George Beau Brummel by Robert Dighton, B

Man's Brown Velvet Coat 1811 at The Charleston Museum, C Henry Moyes by John

Russell............................................................................................................................... 87

Figure 24. Dyer Preliminary Design................................................................................. 88

Figure 25. Research for Coleridge: A Men's Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1810,

B Men's Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1819, C Portrait of Samuel Taylor

Coleridge from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ........................................................... 89

Figure 26. Coleridge Preliminary Design ......................................................................... 90

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Figure 27. Research for Becky: A Progress of the Toilet by James Gillray, B The early

nineteenth-century maid by William Brocas, C Charlotte Corday by Francois-Seraphin

Delpech, D Kinderfruhstuk by Albert Anker.................................................................... 91

Figure 28. Becky Preliminary Design............................................................................... 92

Figure 29. Research for Emma: A Two Printed Cotton Infant Dresses, 1810 from

Augusta Auctions, B Children's Fashion Plate from Journal des Dames et des Modes,

1813, C A Woman with Two Children wearing Kashmir Paisley Shawls by Alfred

Edward 1815-1820 ........................................................................................................ 93

Figure 30. Emma Preliminary Design .............................................................................. 94

Figure 31. Research for Hazlitt: A Portrait of Franz Shubert (1797-1828), Austrian

Composer, Aged 17, circa 1814, B Men's Fashion Plate from Journal de Dames et des

Mode 1811, C Self Portrait of William Hazlitt................................................................. 95

Figure 32. Hazlitt Preliminary Design .............................................................................. 96

Figure 33. Research for De Quincey: A Portrait of a Boy by Nicholas-Bernard Lepicie, B

Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1813, C A Young Peasant Boy by Jean-Baptiste

Greuze ............................................................................................................................... 97

Figure 34. De Quincey Preliminary Design...................................................................... 98

Figure 35. Charles Act One ............................................................................................ 100

Figure 36. Charles Acts Two-Three................................................................................ 101

Figure 37. Mary Act One ................................................................................................ 102

Figure 38. Mary Act Two ............................................................................................... 103

Figure 39. Mary Act Three ............................................................................................. 104

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Figure 40. Fanny Act One............................................................................................... 105

Figure 41. Fanny Act Two.............................................................................................. 106

Figure 42. Fanny Act Three ............................................................................................ 107

Figure 43. Mrs. Kelly Act Two....................................................................................... 108

Figure 44. Dyer Acts One-Three .................................................................................... 109

Figure 45. Coleridge Acts One-Three............................................................................. 110

Figure 46. Becky Acts One-Three .................................................................................. 111

Figure 47. Emma Acts One-Three .................................................................................. 112

Figure 48. Hazlitt Acts Two-Three................................................................................. 113

Figure 49. De Quincey Acts Two-Three......................................................................... 114

Figure 50. Production Photo - Charles and Fanny Act One ........................................... 116

Figure 51. Production Photo - Emma and Becky Act One ............................................. 117

Figure 52. Production Photo - Dyer, Mary, and Emma Act One.................................... 118

Figure 53. Production Photo - Charles and Mary Act One............................................. 119

Figure 54. Production Photo - Mary and Fanny Act Two .............................................. 120

Figure 55. Production Photo - Charles, Mrs. Kelly, and Fanny Act Two ...................... 121

Figure 56. Production Photo - Charles, Coleridge, and Mary Act Two ......................... 122

Figure 57. Production Photo - Charles, De Quincey, Emma, Mrs. Kelly, Fanny, Mary,

Coleridge, and Hazlitt Act Two ...................................................................................... 123

Figure 58. Production Photo - Mary and Charles Act Three .......................................... 124

Figure 59. Production Photo - Charles and Fanny Act Three......................................... 125

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Chapter 1: The Producing Situation

The Coast of Illyria, written by Dorothy Parker and Ross Evans and adapted by

Jennifer Schlueter, Associate Professor of theatre, and Cece Bellomy, an undergraduate

student in theatre, was produced by The Ohio State University’s Department of Theatre

in the spring semester of 2016. Performances ran April 14 through 17 and 19 through 21

in the Thurber Theatre, located in the Drake Performance and Event Center on The Ohio

State University main campus.

Assistant Professor Shilarna Stokes directed the production. Associate Professor

Dan Gray designed the scenery, Sarah Lawler, a second year MFA lighting design

student, designed the lighting, and Lindsay White, a senior studying Earth Science and

Chemistry, designed the sound. As costume designer for this production, it was my first

time working with both of these designers.

Set in 1813 containing characters based on historical figures, The Coast of Illyria

required realistic, historically accurate costumes. In communication with Stokes, it was

clear that because of the nature of the play the costumes should not look like costumes

but clothing that these characters would actually wear, meaning that these costumes

should reflect the styles of the Regency era in which the play takes place and not an

abstraction or adaptation of that era. While some characters might dress to impress,

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others might look grungy with ill-fitting and well-worn clothing. Despite the differences

in clothing, all of the costumes reflected the middle class status of the characters.

The academic setting of the production had certain influences on the production.

Because of the limited number of graduate students staffed in the costume studio, the

amount of constructed costumes was restricted, putting certain restraints on the realized

designs. This meant that I was extremely aware of the resources available to me and

made the most of each of them. Having graduate students to build costumes was a

benefit to the production, so I chose certain costumes to be constructed in order to best

utilize the graduate students’ skills. In sourcing the remaining costumes, many pieces

were rented, and several were purchased as well. Budgets and time constraints also

influenced the end product presented.

The Thurber Theatre has a 35-foot proscenium stage with raked continental

seating that holds 600 patrons. It is the larger of the two theatre spaces in the Drake

Performance and Event Center. This building also houses the theatre department with

offices, classrooms, and studio workspaces.

The costume studio, located within the Drake building, is a well-equipped

workroom to fit the needs of the Department of Theatre. It utilizes nine domestic Bernina

sewing machines, one industrial sewing machine, three domestic sergers, one industrial

serger, four cutting tables, three industrial irons, numerous dress forms, and ample

sewing notions and tools. In addition to this equipment, the costume studio also

possesses hundreds of historical patterns, a wide selection of fabric, and sizeable stock of

men’s and women’s costumes spanning from ancient Greece to modern dress.

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Because of the busy production schedule for the academic year, projects of

varying levels are given to the numerous people who work in the costume studio.

Alterations as well as construction of costume pieces are supervised by the Costume

Studio Manager Rebecca Turk and Associate Professor and Resident Designer Kristine

Kearney and were assigned to the three costume design graduate teaching associates

(including myself) and the nine undergraduate students who each work in the costume

studio three hours a week. These projects were assigned based on skill level and the

needs of each production. The Coast of Illyria was the last production of the season,

following A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Stupid F***ing Bird, which meant a

sufficient time allowed for the amount of built costumes. The focus for the beginning of

the semester was to allow adequate time to prepare both of the other productions first,

while beginning builds for The Coast of Illyria as time allowed.

Discussions between myself and the Costume Studio Manager began in late

November/early December 2015, and the number of builds was decided and assigned

before the end of the autumn semester. Final designs were due after the start of the

spring semester on January 25, 2016. Mockups of each build were scheduled to start

February 15, 2016, with fittings starting the following week. The production went into

dress rehearsals on April 6, 2016; however, the rehearsal schedule was an exception to

the regular schedule established by the department. The Royal Shakespeare Company,

with whom OSU have a partnership, brought a performance series to the Brooklyn

Academy of Music, and the department closed studios and classes to give the staff and

students an opportunity to travel to New York to see these performances. This trip

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occurred April 7-10, 2016, which meant a break in dress rehearsals which then resumed

on April 11. The final performance was on April 21, and the costumes were laundered

and dry cleaned and returned to stock or to the theatres and companies in from which

they were rented.

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Chapter 2: The Producing Concept and Design Scheme

In her director’s concept, Stokes wrote in great detail about her interpretation for

The Coast of Illyria, the world that the play creates and how the characters inhabit it, in

addition to background information on Dorothy Parker and Ross Evans, the original

playwrights, and the production history. While the concept itself was not heavily focused

on visual aspects, the overall themes discussed were relevant to my approach to the

costume design for the production. I found all of this information incredibly inspiring

because it gave me insight into Stokes’ direction and further information about the play’s

history, but several of the approaches Stokes intended to take were what really attracted

my attention. Stokes, in describing the characters in the play, states, “Illyrians love the

works of ancient Greek and Roman writers and, of course, Shakespeare” (2015, p. 2).

This love of ancient Greek and Roman ideals transferred to clothing as well. The

Regency time period was stylistically a hearkening back to the classic Greek and Roman

styles, which is mostly seen in the women’s clothing but is also revealed in the men’s

hairstyles. This period in fashion history was a time to be freer and cast off the restraints

of heavily ornamented and silhouette-altering clothing of decades past. This is a theme I

wanted to emphasize in the designs of the costumes, and I looked to Greek and Roman

motifs to use as well. Along these same lines, the love of the classics only transfers to

certain characters. “The room at first is dominated by Mary’s classical tastes (as arranged

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by her maid, Becky), but with visible ‘modern homemaker’ style additions made by

Fanny, who is seeking to make it her own” (p. 3). This is an aspect I especially saw

manifesting itself in the costumes of Fanny Kelly, an young actress, and Mary Lamb, a

Romantic writer. Mary is older and has a more classic, reserved style while Fanny

follows modern fashion and only wears up-to-date styles. They live in different worlds

of old and new, which is reflected in their clothing choices. A theme I especially noted in

Stokes’ concept was that of Orientalism. Stokes discusses, “I am interested in the fact

that during the Regency Era, ‘Oriental’ objects, prints, etc. (particularly Chinese,

Japanese and Indian) were a source of fascination” (p. 3). This popular fashion trend is

something that could be seen in the textiles used, and that is an idea I especially focused

on when choosing fabrics.

As evidenced in Dorothy Parker and Ross Evans’ The Coast of Illyria (1990, p.

187), this play opened April 4, 1949 and ran through April 23. It was performed at the

Theatre ’49, Gulf Oil Theatre, Fair Grounds, Dallas, TX. The original production team

included Margo Jones as Director, Jonathan Seymour as Assistant Director and Stage

Manager, Jed Mace as Production Designer, and Richard Berstein was in charge of

lighting. The original cast was made up of Romola Robb as Mary Lamb, Wilson Brooks

as Charles Lamb, Frances Walker as Fanny Kelly, Harold Webster as George Dyer,

Rebecca Hargis as Emma Isola, Edwin Whitner as Coleridge, Mary Finney as Mrs. Kelly,

Clinton Anderson as William Hazlitt, and John Hudson as Thomas De Quincey. The

production ran for a total of 32 performances and was met with good reviews. John

Rosenfield of the Dallas News praises, “The literary substance is not so much the

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characters…as the craft which the authors have incorporated…the period into the text.

Then they have added wit and wisdom of their own, worthy commodities from esteemed

sources” (as cited in Kinney, 1990, p. 61). However, despite solid reviews during its

original run, The Coast of Illyria has been little produced since.

Dorothy Parker was a prolific journalist, writer, and poet. “Born Dorothy

Rothschild on August 22, 1893, in West End, New Jersey…Parker was a legendary

literary figure, known for her biting wit” (Biography.com, n.d., para. 1). She wrote in a

wide variety of publications throughout her lifetime. These publications include Vogue,

Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker (para. 1). Parker not only wrote for magazines, but she

also ventured into fiction as well. She created short stories and became a playwright and

screenwriter while living in Hollywood with her second husband (para. 1, 3). In addition

to writing, Parker’s life also somewhat mirrored that of the Lambs. “She formed a group

called the Algonquin Round Table...also known as the Vicious Circle for the number of

cutting remarks made by its members and their habit of engaging in sharp-tongued

banter” (para. 2). Much like the Lamb’s weekly gatherings, Parker held her own

gathering to discuss the artist scene in New York.

Parker wrote numerous plays, and The Coast of Illyria might be seen as her best

work. In his introduction to The Coast of Illyria, Arthur F. Kinney, Thomas W. Copeland

Professor of Literary History at University of Massachusetts and Amherst and Drama and

Performance scholar, states, “The Coast of Illyria, long buried, forgotten, and

unpublished until now, represents some of Dorothy Parker’s finest and most mature

work” (1990, p. 1). Perhaps this is because Parker drew on her own life as material for

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this play. “…this too can be harrowingly autobiographical: The Coast of Illyria not only

displays Dorothy Parker as the artist she aspired to be but also brings us closest to the

woman herself” (p. 1). While Parker and Evans are listed as co-authors, Parker’s voice

might be more evident. Having met Evans several years prior, Parker suggested that the

two collaborate on a play about Charles and Mary Lamb, although Parker was the more

successful writer because Evans had only written a couple unsuccessful novels and a

handful of off-Broadway plays (p. 29). It is clear, however, that Parker completed most

of the writing. “The Coast of Illyria reads like most other works that Parker wrote

herself. At rehearsals in Dallas, cast and crew members recall that Evans said very little,

although he helped Parker with revisions” (p. 29). Perhaps it was Parker who did the

writing, while Evans completed the necessary research. Kinney continues to suppose:

If fetching books was Evans’s primary function, he nevertheless contributed a

great deal, for much of The Coast of Illyria is taken, sometimes verbatim, from

the letters and essays of Charles and Mary Lamb, the letters of Coleridge, selected

essays of Hazlitt and De Quincey, and De Quincey’s Confessions of an English

Opium Eater. (p. 29-30)

However, Evans might not have been the only one to have researched the Lambs and

their friends’ intertwined lives. “But the language of The Coast of Illyria shows

everywhere that Parker also immersed herself in Lamb’s own writings so as to get the

period right” (Kinney, 1990, p. 31). Even if much of the text is taken from direct

sources, Parker and Evans were also adept when it came to filling in other material. “One

of the most remarkable accomplishments of the play, in fact, is the ability of Parker and

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Evans to sustain echoes of Charles and Mary even when they are not quoting or

paraphrasing them” (p. 31). Parker and Evans made these historical figures come to life

on the page and then the stage, and they did take certain liberties in making this happen.

“They collapsed time to intensify Mary’s tragedy, coalescing the portrait of the Lamb

circle around 1810 with Charles’s proposal to Fanny Kelly (1819) and his retirement

from East India House (1813)” (p. 40). This, in effect, makes for a more dramatic plot,

with these important events occurring around the same time.

In comparing the original to the adaptation by Jennifer Schlueter and Cece

Bellomy, several differences are apparent. Before even reading either script, one can see

from the lists of characters that the adaptation has fewer characters. While Parker and

Evans included characters entitled Mr. Wilberforce and Mr. and Mrs. Crittenden,

Schlueter and Bellomy chose to exclude these characters; this also meant cutting any

dialogue in reference to them. In my view, the story does not suffer in any way from this

lack of characters; in fact, we are able to focus more on the characters who drive the story

forward. In the original, Charles and Coleridge discuss the cause of Mary’s absence early

on in Act One. Schlueter and Bellomy reserve any in-depth discussions for Act Three,

which foreshadows Mary’s ultimate descent into madness. I think this adds more tension

that is lacking in Parker and Evans’ original script because the audience is left wondering

until the conclusion of the play why Mary is concerned about being sent to Bedlam. The

adaptation allows for more build-up to the moment Mary snaps and Charles realizes he

can never have a life separate from Mary. In the original there are enough indications of

Mary’s insanity that it is really no surprise that she sinks back into madness by the end.

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Another major difference is found in the poem Coleridge writes in Act One. The poem

Parker and Evans include is “The Ballad of the Dark Ladié,” whereas Schlueter and

Bellomy used the text of “Kubla Kahn.” Parker and Evans use “Kubla Kahn” later in Act

Two, but Schlueter and Bellomy combine the two poetic readings into one using just

“Kubla Kahn,” which I find more effective. Overall, the story remains the same, but

Schlueter and Bellomy trimmed down the dialogue to make the play much more

streamlined and less talky, allowing the focus to be on the characters’ story.

Since the script is made up of characters who existed in real life during the

Regency era, I did a certain amount of pictorial and textual research about these factual

characters represented in a fictional world. Parker provides insight into the lives of many

of these writers and artists; however, to include a better character analysis on my part, I

continued to examine these intertwined lives further. Each of these characters had an

fascinating life story, most being intertwined within each other’s; however, much of my

research was focused on the relationship of Charles and Mary Lamb and their

relationship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge. While this paper reflects research found on

websites dedicated to the lives of these poets, I also found insightful information in

several books written about Charles Lamb and the people in his life.

Charles Lamb (1775-1834) was the youngest of three children born to John Lamb

and Elizabeth Field (Wu, n.d., para. 2). His parents imparted the importance of education

for their children and gave their sons the opportunity for further learning. “The family

was ambitious for its two sons, John and Charles, and successful in entering Charles at

Christ's Hospital, a London charity school of merit, on 9 October 1782” (Courtney, n.d.,

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para. 2). Not only did Charles grow in knowledge while in school, but he also formed

long-lasting relationships. It was at Christ’s Hospital that he met Samuel Taylor

Coleridge, a fellow student, and the two remained friends for the rest of their lives (para.

2). Even with his parents’ aspirations for his education, Charles did not remain in school

for long. Because university training was generally followed by a career in the Church of

England, Charles left school early due to a stammer and in 1791 found work at the East

India Company, where he continued to work for 33 years (para. 2). His life was shaped

by events that happened when he was still a young man. “On Thursday 22 September

1796 he came home from work to find that his sister Mary had stabbed their mother to

death and wounded their father by embedding a fork in his head” (Wu, n.d., para. 4).

Charles was partially traumatized by this tragic event and was thus, at the age of 21,

bound to his sister for the remainder of his life. “He took her straight to the Islington

Asylum, Fisher House, and saved her from permanent incarceration by agreeing in the

future to look after her at home, which he did for the rest of his life” (para. 4). His life

was forever changed by this tragedy, and yet, he still found success.

Charles began a career in writing early in his life and was successful from the

beginning. While focusing on poetry at a young age, he later moved to other forms of

writing. “While Lamb was an occasional journalist, a playwright (of small success), a

writer for children, and a poet, it is his prose which has endured. He early realized that

poetry was not his vocation; his best poetry was written in youth” (Courtney, n.d., para.

1). Charles found love several times, but it was later in life that he first met Fanny Kelly.

“In 1818 Lamb published his early Works, and in 1819 he proposed to Fanny Kelly... She

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refused him, confiding to a friend that she could not carry Mary's problems too” (para.

17). Because Charles was Mary’s sole caretaker, he remained single the rest of his life,

devoting his life to his sister. After falling while taking a walk, Charles died of erysipelas

in 1834 (para. 19). While Mary was the elder sibling and struggled with more health

issues, Charles died much earlier than his sister.

Mary Lamb (1764–1847) was Charles’ older sister and also a writer. The second

of three surviving children, Mary was not sent to school like her brothers; however, she

did teach herself Latin, French, and Italian and read a great deal (Aaron, n.d., para. 1).

While she did not attend a formal school, Mary was still greatly educated through her

own means. Because Mary was 10 years older than Charles, she mothered him, and the

two formed a close relationship (Courtney, n.d., para. 4). Charles and Mary remained

close throughout their lifetimes. While living together, the two took on the role of their

parents’ caretakers after both parents became unemployed (Aaron, n.d., para. 1). This put

a strain emotionally and physically on both Charles and Mary, but especially on Mary

being the eldest of the two. Working as a seamstress, “Mary was not only burdened with

the financial responsibilities of the family but also with the care of a father rapidly

sinking into senility and a mother, physically ailing, who required her daily and nightly

attendance” (para. 2). It is no wonder that Mary was also emotionally burdened. “Under

these conditions Mary's control suddenly snapped. She had previously suffered at least

one attack of a mental illness which has been categorized by her twentieth-century

biographers as a manic-depressive or bi-polar disorder” (para. 2). She lost control and let

her disorder get the best of her. Mary, “during an episode in 1796, killed her mother with

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a kitchen knife” (“Mary Lamb,” n.d., para.1). She did, however, have hope of a reduced

punishment. “In 1796, persons found guilty of committing an act of manslaughter while

mentally impaired were not required to suffer permanent incarceration provided that

sufficient surety could be given that they would be taken care of as potentially unstable

for the rest of their lives” (Aaron, n.d., para. 7). Because of their close relationship,

Charles quickly came to the defense of his sister. “This pledge Charles gave for his

sister, and the two lived together for the next thirty-eight years, their lives intermittently

interrupted by recurring bouts of Mary's madness” (para. 7). After this tragic incident,

Mary strove to maintain a balance in her life. “Kindness and understanding were

qualities which according to all contemporary records Mary herself showed throughout

her life” (para. 10). Mary’s graciousness is what drew people to her and far outweighed

her episodes of madness, yet her illness was always present in her life. “Enduring within

herself a double life, one passive and repressively self-restrained, the other, in its

madness, self-expressive and active, Mary strove to distance her sane self as far as

possible from the act which had destroyed her mother” (para. 15). This was an event

Mary tried her best to forget because of its traumatic effects, but it was not something

that she was ever able to escape. Her relationship with her brother, however, had a

positive lasting effect on her life. “Despite her illness, the siblings developed a

collaborative writing relationship and produced many well-known collections of poetry

and prose for children, including Tales from Shakespeare (1807), Mrs. Leicester’s School

(1809), and Poetry for Children (1809)” (“Mary Lamb,” n.d., para. 2). The two

continued to live and work together, although life was not always easy. Charles and

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Mary moved frequently because of Mary’s notorious reputation, but Charles continued to

care for her until his death in 1834 (para. 3). In fact, Mary outlived her brother by

thirteen years. She died in 1847, after being cared for by numerous family members and

several stays in asylums (para. 3). Mary lived a long life filled with success; however, it

was not always the happiest.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge is perhaps one of the most well-known characters of the

play. Born in 1772, Coleridge was the youngest of ten children born to Ann Bowdon

Coleridge and John Coleridge (“Samuel Taylor Coleridge,” n.d., para. 3). Coleridge’s

education proved important in the connections and relationships he made. “After his

father died in 1781, Coleridge attended Christ’s Hospital School in London, where he

met lifelong friend Charles Lamb” (“Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge,” n.d. para. 1).

Coleridge’s career path was slightly different than that of Lamb. He had intentions of a

becoming a clergyman in the Church of England and enrolled in Jesus College at the

University of Cambridge, only to change his path due to the people he met, including

Robert Southey (para. 2-3). His time at Cambridge was formative and influenced many

decisions moving forward. He and Southey made plans to move to America and set up a

commune in Pennsylvania, but when Southey married and abandoned their plans to

pursue a career in law, Coleridge never returned to Cambridge to finish his degree (para.

3-4). In the same year, several important events happened in his life. “Coleridge wed in

1795, in spite of the fact that he still loved Mary Evans, who was engaged to another

man. Coleridge’s marriage was unhappy and he spent much of it apart from his wife”

(para. 4). However, it was at this point when Coleridge began his flourishing writing

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career. “In 1795 Coleridge befriended William Wordsworth, who greatly influenced

Coleridge’s verse. Coleridge, whose early work was celebratory and conventional, began

writing in a more natural style” (para. 5). This was one of the most important and

influential relationships in his life and affected his future career. “Over the next two

decades Coleridge lectured on literature and philosophy, wrote about religious and

political theory, spent two years on the island of Malta…in an effort to overcome…his

opium addiction, and lived off of financial donations and grants” (para. 6). Remaining

addicted to opium, he continued to write until his death. Coleridge died in 1834, the

same year as Charles (para. 6). His writing has remained admired long after his death.

After researching the play and its characters, the following step was to begin the

costume design for this production. The design scheme for The Coast of Illyria is true to

the Regency time period in which the play takes place. The clothing is realistic,

reflecting the styles and silhouettes worn in England 1813. This meant tailcoats, cravats,

vests, and trousers for the men and for the women dresses with higher cut waistlines that

fall directly under the bust (or empire waistlines) with fuller skirts. The people in the

Regency era were looking back at the clothing of the ancient Greeks and Romans, and

this is especially reflected in the women’s clothing and the men’s hairstyles. My

emphasis was on the style lines important to indicating the time period and using motifs

that were popular at the time. My initial point of departure was with the painting The

Assuaging of the Waters painted by John Martin in 1840.

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Figure 1. The Assuaging the Waters by John Martin

This painting, created just a few decades after the time of this play, inspired me

immediately. Being set in a coastal area with breaking waves upon a rocky cleft, I felt as

though the painting had strong ties to the themes of the play. Not only is a seascape

mentioned in the title of the play, but other elements fit in with certain ideas present in

the play as well. The painting has an overall romantic, natural look to its style as well as

color palette. The Romantic era, which was an artistic, literary, and intellectual

movement that spanned from about 1800 to 1850, focused on embracing naturalism and

classicism. I was inspired by the colors Martin used in this painting and translated them

to color choices used in the costumes. The sun breaking through in the distance is

reminiscent of the hope that Mary holds onto throughout the play, no matter how small

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that hope may become. Martin also includes an attention-grabbing dichotomy between

the white bird and black bird. Many of the other colors used in the painting are muted

and soft, whereas the birds are placed in sharp contrast to their background. Lightness

and darkness are present throughout the play in a number of areas. Both Charles and

Coleridge cast a heavy cloud over those around them, especially Mary, due in part to

their dependence on alcohol and drugs. Mary also struggles with her own inner demons,

bringing a dichotomy of lightness and darkness within her own mind; she is the calm

before the storm until she becomes the storm itself.

Charles is a part of the Romantic movement, yet he also works as a clerk, which

his clothing choices reflect. He, as a character and a historical figure, dresses

conservatively, a choice that is reflected in the colors and styles I have chosen for him, as

well as to a certain extent, a portrait of him as seen in Figure 2.

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Figure 2. A portrait of Charles Lamb from The Charles Lamb Society

This portrait reflects a conservative manner of dress in the cut of the tailcoat as well as

the muted colors worn. The colors I chose to use in his palette, mostly greens and

browns, complement his sister’s color palette of sea tones nicely, showing an important

tie between them. His style is comparable to the other men in the play, using similar cuts

in his tailcoat and fall front trousers – trousers that included a panel that buttoned up the

front to the waist since this era was before the invention of the zipper. Charles, however,

is one of the best put-together men present on stage until his mental decline in Act Three,

although nothing about his costume is overly ostentatious or flashy. He mostly keeps his

emotions in check, or at least subdued, and I wanted his clothing to be a reflection of his

need for control and order. I chose subtle plaids and organic patterns within his color

palette that coincide with these characteristics. This sense of order, however, is lost when

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he believes he is losing everything, and his clothes become the least of his worries. To

streamline the number of costumes, I choose to keep just one tailcoat for Charles that he

is able to wear with two vests and two pairs of pants. This gives him versatility within

his costumes without the need for a complete costume change within every act.

Mary’s costumes reflect her personality and character progression. I chose to

reserve the palest colors for Mary, all of which express elements of the sea. Mary feels

directly tied to the twins in Twelfth Night, who are shipwrecked, so I found it important to

give her costumes a sense of lightness and airiness with colors that reflect the sea.

However, she grounds herself with wearing the same sea green shawl throughout the

play; it acts as a type of security blanket. As the play progresses, the colors Mary wears

become paler to almost nonexistent. While she first enters in a warm, light-toned salmon

colored dress, she finishes the play in a white dress, reminiscent of a hospital gown. As

Mary’s lucidity slowly leaves her, it is as if the color is drained from her. While the

colors of Mary’s costumes change, the cut of her clothing changes as well. Mary is one

of the older women of the play, so her clothing reflects that. She is not fashion forward

but wears simple and classic styles; she is not interested in heavily ornamented dresses

but in tastefully placed trim. To show a variety of looks for Mary, she wears a different

dress for each act in order to better depict her mental decline.

Fanny Kelly is a young actress who is concerned about appearances, which means

her costumes greatly differ from those of Mary. While Mary wears more classically

conservative styles, Fanny wears more up-to-date, fashion-forward styles. She wears

lower cut, more colorful styles reflecting her youth and vivaciousness. I was inspired by

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the colors of the sky in the research painting for Fanny’s color palette, mostly purples and

pinks with hints of green, yellow, and white, giving a feminine appeal to her clothing.

Many of her fabrics I chose to dress her in are soft floral prints. A portrait of Fanny

Kelly herself also inspired me.

Figure 3. A portrait of Fanny Kelly

While many silhouettes and styles of Regency dresses were similar with high waists and

long skirts, I chose to add a little more variety in Fanny’s dresses than Mary’s. I varied

the necklines, skirts and sleeves to demonstrate Fanny’s adherence to fashion and also

included much more trim and decoration. Being an actress, she is deeply concerned

about her appearance, and she needs to best represent herself to the new people she is

constantly meeting throughout the play. Everything about Fanny’s clothing suggests

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femininity and youth. I also chose to give Fanny three separate dresses because both she

and Mary are the female characters who spend the most time on stage.

Mrs. Kelly, Fanny’s mother who is an extreme stage mother, has a style similar to

her daughter’s but a little more mature and ostentatious. She is highly concerned about

presentation, and her clothing is no exception. I chose richer colors for her costume,

focusing on gold, deep red, and dark green to emphasize her desires for a high social

status and the need to present herself in the best of advantage. This is further accentuated

by the large amounts of trim adorning her dress from neck to feet.

George Dyer is a middle-aged writer and translator who spontaneously began

living with the Lambs a few months prior. He is striving to be as fashion-forward as

possible but falling incredibly short. I chose to highlight this specifically in his clothing

by giving him an older style than the other men because it adds to the comic nature of his

character. He wears knee breeches, which were going out of style at the time, and white

tights. This is paired with an older style coat and a bicorn hat. All of these clothing

items were popular in the early years of the Regency period but were not fashionable in

1813 when this play is set. I looked to a portrait of Beau Brummel, a fashion icon of the

early Regency period, as the main inspiration for Dyer’s costume because it would reflect

Dyer’s idea of being fashionable but not quite meeting the mark.

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Figure 4. Portrait of George Beau Brummel by Robert Dighton

The colors I chose for these items imitate his personality. He is warm and caring,

although a bit forgetful, and so his clothing is rendered in warm earth tones, such as

browns and reds with touches of greens. In order to limit the number of costume pieces

for three acts, Dyer wears the same coat, shirt, and breeches for each act while trading out

vests and cravats.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a drug addict who has abandoned all family ties.

While his career might have once been on a steady rise, he is now at his lowest point, and

his clothing is the least of his worries. He is overall a mess and extremely unkempt.

Although he might be wearing all the correct clothing pieces that would have been

appropriate for a regency man, those pieces are not quite in order and perhaps not worn

exactly how they should be. His clothing should look well-worn and lived in; perhaps

these are clothes that might have been at one time nice and expensive but now are old and

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tattered. Due to his declining mental state as well social status, I costumed Coleridge in

much darker clothing, selecting the deeper tones of greens, blues, and browns. None of

his clothing items are heavily patterned, and the texture of these fabrics is much rougher

and worn. His costume changes are fewer to accentuate his meager financial means.

Becky is a maid and housekeeper who has been with the Lambs for years and,

therefore, wears a uniform of sorts. Her dress is simple with very little decoration

because it serves a utilitarian purpose; her style is all about functionality rather than

fashion. Most of my research of maids in this time period depicted women wearing

dresses in various iterations of lighter blue tones, and I chose to remain in this color

palette for Becky’s costume.

Figure 5. Progress of the Toilet by James Gillray

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The shade of blue present in Martin’s painting (Figure 1) of the sea complements Mary’s

color palette, which forms a necessary connection between Becky and Mary. I paired this

color with a striped fabric to further reinforce Becky’s utilitarian nature. Becky’s

costume does not change at all throughout the course of the play because a costume

change is not necessary and more appropriately fits the nature of the character.

Emma is a young teenage girl who has recently come to live with the Lambs after

being orphaned, and because she is a teenage girl, she dresses much younger than the

other women in the play. She wears simple clothing because she is not well-to-do, but

she does wear a certain amount of decoration in her self-trimmed dresses with ruffles and

tucks. The cut of her dress is much shorter to signify youth, which is paired with a pair

of ruffled bloomers and lace-up flat shoes. She is very energetic and eager, and her

clothing lends itself to those characteristics. Most of the fabrics used in Emma’s

costumes are small-scale floral in creams, pinks, and rusts. Rather than wearing a

different dress for each act, she wears the same dress for two acts, which is accessorized

in different ways to add variety.

William Hazlitt is quite concerned with his appearance and therefore is one of the

best-dressed people on the stage, certainly the best-dressed male. He is a poet and painter

and somewhat of a philanderer. Because he is focused on his looks, I chose to dress him

in streamlined, fashion-forward clothing. He wears riding boots, which were popular at

the time, setting him apart from the other men who wear a flat dress shoe. I chose his

color palette to include mostly grays, tans, and blacks, suggesting a sophisticated nature.

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I was inspired by a portrait of William Hazlitt, who wears a dark coat with a simply tied

cravat and looks quite dark and brooding.

Figure 6. Self portrait of William Hazlitt

He wears one tail coat and one pair of pants for Acts Two and Three with two vests and

two cravats.

Thomas De Quincey, a 19 year-old writer and admirer of Charles Lamb, is the

youngest male and therefore must look the part. His style is a little more relaxed than the

other men, as evidenced by an open collar shirt and no cravat. This style was taken

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directly from a portrait of a young man that inspired me for the design of De Quincey’s

costume.

Figure 7. A Young Peasant Boy by Jean-Baptiste Greuze

The colors worn by this young man, blue and rust, are the colors I used in this costume as

well. He is living on the streets, so he should look slightly destitute, but not at the same

low level as Coleridge. Because of this quality, De Quincey wears the same costume

throughout both acts in which he appears.

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Chapter 3: Character Analysis

The Coast of Illyria takes place in the early nineteenth century in England as

stated in the stage directions; Stokes chose 1813 to be the exact year. It is set in London

in October in the home of Charles and Mary Lamb. Many of the characters, including the

Lambs, are historical figures in British history, mostly poets and writers. When the play

begins, Mary is about to return home after spending about three months in a psychiatric

hospital.

At the time this play occurs, Charles Lamb is in his thirties; Stokes chose to place

him at the age of 38, the age he was in 1813. He is a writer and seems to be fairly well

off because he is able to afford artwork by William Hogarth, which is specifically

referred to throughout the play. It is later revealed that Charles works as a clerk for the

East India House in order to pay his debts and for Mary’s care. The East India House is

the headquarters for the East India Company, which dealt with trading in India and

southeast Asia.

Charles is warm and friendly and deeply cares for his sister Mary, so much so that

he strives to make everything in the house as well as his love interest, Fanny Kelly,

perfect upon Mary’s arrival. However, it is clear that he is hiding something. He does

not seem to be completely honest and open about his life since Mary’s absence for fear

that it might upset her. He has been known to drink, and yet, he seems to at least try to

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hide this fact from Fanny as well. When any kind of hardship arises, Charles uses his

drinking to cope and falls hard back into that habit as soon as Mary returns. However, it

is almost as if he is able to snap out of this habit as soon he wants because once he

receives the news of his forthcoming pension, his whole mood and demeanor changes; he

is a brand new man who no longer needs to drink his sorrows away. This change is only

skin deep though; he knows he is eternally bound to Mary. They are each co-dependent

on the other, and Charles knows he can never truly be happy as long as Mary is alive.

“What a couple we are. She is her constant danger, driving me to this; I with my stinking

drunkenness sending her quicker to her hells” (p. 88). This idea is further reinforced

throughout the play. Because they both are afflicted by mental disorders, they, in turn,

deeply affect the other’s happiness. “Our love for each other has condemned us both to

an eternity of dual loneliness. I watch her suffer. I wish she were dead” (p. 89). Much

of the relationship between Charles and Mary is expressed through Charles’ interactions

with other characters. Through his relationship with Fanny, it is clear that he wants to

start a new life for himself, away from his drinking and away from Mary’s influence on

him. Conversely, it is revealed through the course of the play that he knows this is not a

viable option for him. “I have spent so long seeing hope when there could be none. Hope

that Mary might be cured. Hope that my writing would one day earn enough to purchase

our safety. Hope of having the life of a man, not a brother” (p. 88). In the end, Charles

knows that this hope is just that; a life away from Mary, a life that he could live on his

own with Fanny, is not a reality.

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Mary Lamb is slightly older than Charles. With Charles being 38 years old,

Stokes chose to place Mary at 43 years old, tightening up the age distance between them.

She is also a writer and is currently working on a compilation of Shakespeare adaptations

with her brother. It is unclear how long this project has been in the works, especially

since she has just returned from a stay at a psychiatric facility. She is in the same social

class as her brother, but it does not seem as though she is able to support herself by any

type of financial means and relies solely on the support of Charles.

Mary is calm and tries to maintain order throughout most of the play. She is

concerned about others over herself and does not want to be a burden to anyone. As soon

as she arrives back home, she is ready to begin work with Charles on their Shakespeare

collection. While on the surface it might seem as though she is genuinely eager and

excited to be able to write again, there could perhaps be a deeper need for Mary to keep

busy. While she is working, she remains mostly calm and collected, although she seems

a little bit obsessed over her work. She is friendly and welcoming to all who enter her

home, especially Fanny and her mother. She needs to make a good impression on both of

these women since they both surely know the news and/or rumors about Mary’s stay at a

psychiatric facility. Many of Mary’s old friends come to visit as well, so she must assure

them all that she is healthy as well as physically and mentally strong, as to not cause any

concern. For most of the play, Mary does seem healthy or at least is good at putting on

an act to appear healthy. However, her dependence on her brother and their work might

be the only thing keeping her sane. She completely breaks down after Charles receives

the news that he will receive a pension from the East India House; perhaps she realizes

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that they will no longer be dependent on each other. Charles can now financially provide

for himself and a future family, and perhaps Mary believes that he will no longer need

her love to support him. With this money, maybe she believes that he will no longer need

to write, or at least not with her, which would be another reason she might not feel

needed. Despite these conjectures, it is clear that something inside of Mary snaps and the

healthy, happy façade she once had is gone. Just as she fixates on her work, she finds

other events to obsess over, such as an imagined trip to Cambridge she took with Charles

and the murder of her mother. She has an obsessive nature, and that nature latches on to

Charles as well. However, she is aware of her dependence on Charles and even

acknowledges it as the play closes. She cannot be left alone without her brother, and she

knows that the only way for Charles to live a happy life is if she dies first.

Fanny Kelly is an aspiring young actress in her early twenties; Stokes chose the

age of 23, placing her exactly 20 years younger than Mary. The script describes her as

elegant and poised. Due to her graceful nature, she is a peacekeeper; she wants things to

be just so in order to make the best impression. Fanny needs to please everyone, but she

is eventually torn between her family and her love for Charles. Although it is revealed

later that she was not brought up with the best of means, she has high expectations for

herself and the man she plans to marry. Upon the introduction of her mother, it is clear

that these standards were instilled into her by a mother who is very conscious of social

standing. It seems as though even though she is willing to marry Charles despite the

rumors of his drunken behavior, there is still a part of her that greatly looks down on him

for that aspect of his life. Fanny strikes me as little flighty. She is eager to please

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Charles and his sister, but as soon as the situation takes a turn for the worse, she leaves

him to please her mother. Once things begin to look better for Charles, she immediately

is willing to start a life with him again.

Mrs. Kelly is in her late forties and a definite social climber. The script describes

her as a stage mother to the extreme, which is made evident by her actions in the limited

time she is on stage. She is very overprotective of her daughter, but it is clear that she

would also do anything for Fanny. Fanny discusses in the script that her father was a

drunk who left them and her mother had to raise her on her own. While it might seem a

little ridiculous that Mrs. Kelly will not allow her daughter to be involved with the man

that she loves, it is more understandable why she has the standards to which she holds

herself and Fanny. Since Mrs. Kelly herself was married to an alcoholic who wasted all

their money, it would make sense that she would not want the same fate for her daughter.

Because of her own societal climbing, Mrs. Kelly is aware of status and looks down on

those who she believes are beneath her, especially writers. Despite her obvious

disapproval of lower social statuses, she herself is not of the upper classes. She has had

to work for what she has now without a husband to support her. In the Regency time

period, it would have been difficult for a woman to support herself and a child, but it is

clear that Mrs. Kelly has been successful.

George Dyer is described as a small, unkempt, kind man in his sixties. However,

in casting this role, some of these descriptors have changed. Stokes chose an actor who is

stocky and tall, and she placed him at 45 years old. His unkemptness also manifested

itself in its his mannerism rather than his clothing. Overall, this does not make much

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difference in how the character itself is portrayed. Physically, Dyer is an ever-present

character; however, he is not always present in the conversation. He speaks when

necessary, although that might just be when he is actually aware of the conversation

happening. He seems a little absent-minded but is quite good-hearted. When the other

characters describe him, it is learned that he is also a writer and he came to the Lambs’

house for breakfast in May and never left; this speaks to his character a good deal. He

must be agreeable enough for the Lambs to tolerate his presence in their home, but his

prolonged stay also shows that he must be able to make himself comfortable wherever he

is. Dyer describes himself as a “slave of fashion,” yet, being middle-aged, I considered

that a contradiction to what the character actually wears. He might think that he is

following the latest fashion trends, but he falls a little short, which makes that line more

comedic. Consistent with that, Dyer seems to be the comic relief of the play.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge, or Coleridge as he is referred to in the play, is 38 years

old and a renowned poet. The script describes him as “not handsome, but arresting,”

“haggard,” and “jittery.” Despite his work being famous, his reputation is notorious.

Coleridge is addicted to laudanum, an opium-based painkiller popular in this era.

Because of his addiction, his clothing is unkempt and unattended. He is constantly

disheveled and has no respect for his appearance. He has abandoned his wife and child

and seems to have no regrets to cutting all ties to his family. Coleridge’s closest friends

are Charles and Mary, and he is thrilled for Mary’s return. While he loves Mary, he is

ultimately selfish and mostly focuses on how Mary can help him. Every little problem is

a dramatic crisis for him. Along with these characteristics, Coleridge is exuberant and is

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easily excited about the smallest of triumphs. He lives life to the fullest, even if that is

with the assistance of laudanum.

Becky is “a bristling maid, too long in the service of the Lambs.” However she is

much more than a housekeeper, but Becky appoints herself as the overall peacekeeper in

the Lamb household. She is 35 years old and single with no family. It seems as though

she feels fulfilled in her household duties because it gives her purpose. Becky

continually keeps everything running smoothly and needs all aspects of the house to be

precise at all times. She will not allow for laziness or ineptness. She imposes herself as

the moral compass of the family and those who associate themselves with the Lambs.

Becky makes it abundantly clear that she does not approve of Charles’ choice of Fanny

because perhaps Fanny is only interested in Charles for his fame or infamy. Becky is

protective of her family and does not approve of the company they choose to keep. Even

though her intentions might be misplaced, it is clear that her primary concern is for the

Lamb family.

Emma Isola is a 14-year-old girl who has been taken as a ward by Mary Lamb.

She was orphaned, and Mary took pity on her and brought her into her home. Emma is

“endearing in every way.” She is sweet and innocent and perhaps a little absent-minded.

Becky is constantly reminding her to help with the housework. Emma does not speak

much in the play, but when she does it is to express her excitement about meeting famous

writers and to ask for their signatures in her book. She brings youth and life to even the

darker situations.

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William Hazlitt is 38 years old and “has been spared a great many of the

hardships of life.” He has also abandoned his wife because he pursues his passions, no

matter how carnal. He is a writer and a painter, who was quite prolific at both. Hazlitt is

completely focused on his appearance, and therefore, dresses much better than the other

men and appears conceited. He is quite disconcerted when he is splashed with mud.

Hazlitt is passionate and transfers that passion to all of his interactions.

Thomas De Quincey is 19 and a lover of the writings of Charles Lamb. He seems

to have followed in his mentor’s steps because he is described as “emaciated, drug

addled, and luminous.” He comes from a well-to-do family and has chosen to live a life

on the streets. Mrs. Kelly calls him a beggar when he first enters in Act Two, so he

clearly does not look well put together.

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Chapter 4: The Process

Once my preliminary designs were presented on November 30, 2015, my next

step was to further refine and define those designs. Overall, the designs did not change

much in the almost two months between preliminary and final designs. I mostly refined

each character and further defined each one’s color palette.

Over winter break, I further developed each sketch and began painting. My goal

was to have much of my painting done over the break, but I became very hesitant in

putting paint to paper because I felt as though many of my designs were still very

uncertain. I had an idea of the pieces the costume studio would build, but other than that

I did not know exactly what each of the other costume pieces would look like because I

planned to rent many of the other items to fill in the gaps. At the time, I was in the

process of requesting information from several rental houses and theatres, so I was unsure

of what pieces I would be renting from where. I wanted my paper designs to reflect the

actual designs seen on stage as closely as they could but I did not know yet what all of

the pieces would look like yet, which gave me reservations in my painting process

because painting felt so final. However, I gained my confidence once the semester

started through discussions with the director and the costume studio manager and through

further research and sourcing. Therefore, I made great progress moving toward the final

designs, confident that the aspects of the design began falling into place.

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We had a design refinement meeting on January 11, 2016, and I provided research

for outerwear along with the preliminary designs. I did find out at this meeting that role

of Emma was being recast, but the actress who was chosen was similar enough in size

that this did not cause any changes in the course of finishing designs. Following this

meeting, Stokes and I met privately to thoroughly discuss specific characters. Several

major changes ensued. We met for about an hour and worked through the whole script,

making sure we were both in agreement as to what everyone should wear when and how

they should look wearing it. Since most of the characters come in from outside

throughout the play, I had originally researched and designed outerwear and hats for all

of those characters, as stated previously. This included Fanny and Mrs. Kelly, however,

Stokes envisioned the staging occurring in a manner that the audience would never see

the women in their outerwear and bonnets because they would remove them in a

receiving room, not the drawing room in which the place takes place. While the styles of

women’s coats and hats were very intricate and interesting and could have added more

layers to these female characters, not having to source or build these items saved me and

the costume studio time and money. We also discussed options for Mary’s Act One

costume because she mentions needing to change out of the heavy gown she is wearing.

Having already designed three costumes for Mary, I did not think it was necessary to add

another in Act One. During my research, I discovered an image of an over gown or

overdress that was popular for women during the Regency time period. I suggested that

perhaps Mary could enter wearing an overdress over the dress I had already designed for

Act One that would be of a heavier fabric and could be easily removed. Stokes and I

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both agreed that this would be a perfect solution Mary’s line in the script without giving

her a complete costume change within the same act. Another discussion we had was

concerning Fanny’s costumes. Stokes mentioned that in Act One Fanny is off to

rehearsal and therefore would not necessarily be wearing her best clothes. I had

originally for Fanny a short-sleeved dress with rows of trim at the bottom for Act One

and a much simpler and slightly more casual dress with longer sleeves and a fichu, which

is a half-circular or triangular neck scarf, for Act Two. Stokes and I decided it would be

best to switch these two dresses, making the more casual dress her rehearsal dress and the

more heavily trimmed dress the dress she wears when her mother meets the Lambs. We

discussed further what the physical state of some of the characters should be like at

different points in the play, which helped me further define specifically how Coleridge

and Charles would appear at the different states of their separate declines. These few

changes and further refinements, however, were the only substantial ones that occurred

between the presentations of preliminary and final designs.

While working towards final designs, I began sourcing items to give me a better

idea of specifically what items were coming from where. Before the end of the autumn

semester, I met with Rebecca Turk, Costume Studio Manager, to discuss builds for the

production. Because the department has very few costume pieces from the Regency time

period, we were able to have a slightly larger build list in order to add to our stock, and

the production schedule for the semester allowed for time to spend on those builds. At

that point, the list included: Mary’s Act Three dress, Fanny’s Act One dress (now Act

Two dress) with a matching spencer, a women’s cropped jacket, to be worn throughout

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the show, three pairs of fall front trousers, three men’s shirts, two vests for Charles, a

tailcoat for Charles, and various accessories. I discovered through initial sourcing that the

production might be better benefitted with a slightly different build list. The dresses I

originally thought I wanted built by the studio I had now discovered that I could find

rental options that would work just as well. Kristine Kearney, my advisor, found fall

front trousers through an online vendor, Gentleman’s Emporium, which specializes in

historical men’s and women’s clothing. My discussion with Stokes also influenced a

decision in regard to the build list because it made more sense to me to build Mary’s Act

One dress and an overdress to coordinate with it rather than trying to piece together rental

options for a complete costume. In a follow-up discussion with Turk, we finalized a

build list that now included Mary’s Act One dress and overdress, Fanny’s Act Three

dress, three men’s shirts, two vests for Charles, a tailcoat for Charles, and a turban for

Mrs. Kelly.

As I briefly mentioned, purchasing and renting costumes became the main source

for the costumes for this production due to the smaller amount of stock items that the

department owns for this time period. Before my preliminary designs were due, I began

searching through our costume stock, with the help of Turk, to pull anything that could

possibly work within the world of my designs. In order to have a better idea of what

additional pieces I still needed to find sources for, we scheduled fittings for actors for

which I had pulled options during the second week of the semester, which was before

final designs were due. This process was extremely helpful in moving forward with

rental searching and purchasing. In the stock of costumes, the Department of Theatre has

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three pairs of fall front trousers in stock, and I was able to use two out of the three for

Coleridge and De Quincey, both for whom I was able to pull shirts for as well. I was also

able to find a couple coat options for Coleridge and Hazlitt and vest options for

Coleridge, Dyer, and Hazlitt. I was slightly less successful with the women but was able

to find options for Fanny’s Act Two dress and Mrs. Kelly’s dress. Both of these dresses

were the inspirations my renderings, with the addition of trim.

With these options in mind, I was able to move forward in pursuing rental options

and then further filling in with purchased items. Having been involved in several

productions in the past that used quite a few rental packages, I was already familiar with

a few rental companies, but Turk provided me with further options. The company I had

the most interest in was Oregon Shakespeare Festival because of their extensive stock, all

of which is online for perusal. I began my search within their stock early on in my design

process and found quite a few feasible options but did run into some roadblocks with not

finding costumes in the styles and sizes I needed and quite a few of their Regency pieces

being unavailable until November 2016. Turk recommended the Guthrie Theatre’s

costume rental company to check with as well, so I did some research into their stock and

contacted them for further information early in January. After finishing preliminary

fittings with the items I pulled from stock, I sent information to Costume Rentals at the

Guthrie Theatre that included actors’ measurements, specific pieces I was looking for,

and research and sketches. Their staff then pulled pieces from their stock based on this

information and compiled a list of items, most of which included pictures for me to

peruse. I was given five business days to contact them with a decision of which pieces I

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would like to rent. Costume Rentals was able to provide mostly menswear, although they

did have a limited number of options for women as well. I was able to choose several

options for Coleridge, De Quincey, Dyer, and Hazlitt but did not choose anything for the

women because the options were not viable with my designs. These items were shipped

and arrived on February 19, 2016, and we scheduled fittings for seven of the ten cast

members for the following week.

Additional options for rentals were regional theatres within the state of Ohio as

well as Otterbein University, with whom we have a borrowing policy. Kearney

suggested contacting both Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and Cleveland Playhouse

because she has worked with both companies and knows their costume stock. Having

previously designed for Cleveland Playhouse a production of Emma, which also takes

place in the regency time period, Kearney was familiar with several items that would be

feasible options for my design and would be available to rent. I contacted both theatres

but did not receive any correspondence following; this is partially because both theatres’

websites had very little contact information. Kearney then emailed both costume shop

managers directly and made contact with both of them. We pursued a rental at Cleveland

Playhouse, and I set up a date and time with Jeffrey Van Curtis, the costume shop

manager, to visit their costume shop and look through their stock. The Cleveland

Playhouse costume shop allowed designers to visit stock on Mondays and Fridays, and

Friday worked best with everyone’s schedule. Kearney hoped to include Sarah Fickling,

third year MFA in costume design, and Sierra Johnson, first year MFA in costume

design, in the excursion as well, so we chose Friday, February 19, 2016, which was after

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A Midsummer Night’s Dream had finished its run at the Lincoln Theatre and things had

slowed down a bit in the costume studio.

In the past, I have had the experience of looking through costume stock of

different theatres and choosing items based on my designs, but this was probably the

most pleasant and organized experience to date. We arrived late morning at the

Cleveland Playhouse costume shop, and Curtis immediately gave us a tour of the

facilities and pointed in the direction of the sections of stock that would be most

applicable. The costume stock at Cleveland Playhouse is extensive, well-organized, and

well-lit, making it easy to search. Both Fickling and Johnson assisted me in hanging

pieces together and taking notes, which made the process smooth and efficient. I

primarily looked for women’s clothing since Costume Rentals at the Guthrie Theatre was

able to provide only menswear; however I did look through their men’s stock as well to

allow for further options in case the rental pieces coming from the Guthrie were not

viable. The female characters I focused on were Fanny and Mary, but I did find some

great options for Mrs. Kelly as well that would not require much alteration or additions at

all. In my searching, I had been unable to find a dress that would be similar enough to

my design for Mary’s Act Three dress, and that was my foremost goal in looking through

the stock at Cleveland Playhouse. I did not find any options, but I was able to choose

three dresses that all had potential for Fanny’s Act Two dress, which would save time and

money to alter the dress I had planned to use from our own stock. We ultimately left

with dresses for Fanny and Mrs. Kelly, vests for Coleridge, Dyer, and Hazlitt, an

overcoat for Hazlitt, a robe for Charles, a coat and breeches for Dyer, and several period-

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appropriate corsets for the women. All of these items were also fitted in the following

week along with the rental items from Costume Rentals. Overall this was an enjoyable

experience, and it was great to see what other theatres in Ohio are doing and make

connections with other costume technicians.

In addition to rentals, I also needed to supplement existing clothing with

purchased items; this was an excellent way to customize more items to what I had

designed as well as add to our stock without the stress of building every costume piece.

Turk suggested a few online options, one of them being Etsy. Etsy is an online

marketplace that allows individual vendors to sell handmade or vintage items. Having

purchased through Etsy several times previously, I was comfortable doing so also

knowing that they do not charge tax, since OSU is an educational institution that requires

all purchases to be tax exempt. Through many Etsy vendors functioning as costume

makers, I located sources for several of the dresses needed for the production; the biggest

challenge I faced was choosing which vendor I should use for which costume item. I also

encountered the problem of manufacturing time frames fitting within our production

schedule. Several costume makers need up to eight weeks to complete a build depending

on their order schedule, which did not fit well with our needs. My final decisions were

made for various reasons. One vendor, Historical Designs, was able to produce a

readymade vest for Dyer, a readymade dress for Emma and a custom order dress for

Emma, which meant most of Emma’s costume pieces being taken care of by one vendor.

A second vendor I used, The Modest Maiden, allowed me to choose fabric for Becky’s

dress in order to make the dress as close to my design as possible. Charlene, the owner of

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The Modest Maiden, was communicative and extremely helpful, taking my research and

applying it to the order, offering to make a fichu to coordinate with it as well. For Mary’s

Act Two dress, I found a vendor, It’s Not Pajamas, who had a dress similar to what I had

designed, but there were enough differences that I contacted Jennifer Spaulding, the

owner, to see if further customization was a possibility. She was more than willing to

add further customization in lengthening the three-quarter sleeves to full length,

removing a ruffle, and giving me further options for fabric to more closely match the

color of my rendering. In doing this, she was able to supply a fabric that was

exceptionally similar to my design, so once it arrived all we would have to do would be

to add trim. The fourth vendor I used on Etsy, Heritage Dressmakers, was one that I

found while finishing my designs and actually based the design for Fanny’s Act Two

dress on this dress from their inventory. Unlike some of the other dresses I purchased,

this one was merely a base, which would need added trim and other accessories.

Between these purchases, the rental items, and our own stock, I had covered almost every

major costume piece, which was due in the costume studio by February 22, 2016. The

exception to this, however, was still Mary’s Act Three dress.

I began sourcing accessories, such as hats, and shoes early in February, yet these

purchases were not made until after fittings had occurred, more concrete rental choices

had been made, and fabrics had been chosen. Every male character in the cast, except

Charles, needed a hat because they all enter from outside, and unlike the women, wear

their outerwear into the drawing room area, which is the main playing space on the stage.

Through extensive online searching, I sourced hats for all four men through a variety of

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online stores. The majority of the hats that were required could be purchased from

Gentleman’s Emporium. I had previously purchased fall front trousers from this

company and was happy with the products, so I was willing to make another purchase

from them. The one hat I had difficulty finding was a bicorn for Dyer. Most options I

found would work well for a Halloween costume but were not high enough quality for a

theatrical production. Through further searching, I was able to locate a few sources with

decent quality hats that could be tweaked to fit more to my needs for the character of

Dyer. Fortunately I was able to pull shoe options for every character except Fanny.

Luckily I was able to find several options for shoes for her, all of which were lace-up

ballet flats. Through my research, I discovered that women primarily wore flat shoes,

and during the time in which the play takes place pointed toes and laces were popular.

Fortunately, this is a style that is currently popular; however, I ran into quite a few

problems in actually purchasing a pair. I had several options: Charlotte Russe, Macy’s,

and Zappos, all of which had issues with tax exempt purchases. Through trips to the

store, phone calls, and online chats, my best option came by the way of Amazon, with

whom we already have a tax exempt account. The shoes I found through Amazon were

not my first choice but became my best choice.

Choosing fabric for this production is probably the easiest process I have

experienced in my costume design career thus far. At the end of the autumn semester, the

costume studio received several fabric donations, which needed to be organized and

added to our stock, and through this task, I fell in love with one fabric in particular. It is

a beautiful pale, creamy yellow linen blend with warm purple flowers and a design

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reminiscent of Chinese motifs; this fabric also has excellent soft drape that would lend

itself well to the styles of the Regency era. Stokes mentioned the use of Chinese

inspirations, and this fabric was an inspiration for Fanny’s color palette and partially her

design as well. Because there was a little less than three yards of this fabric, my initial

plan was to make a spencer jacket (see Figure 8), which then presented the challenge of

finding three dresses that would all coordinate with that fabric.

Figure 8. Green silk self-striped spencer: 19th century from the Museum of London

However, since a spencer was taken off the build list, I was determined to find another

use for this textile. As I completed painting my renderings, I was inspired by this fabric

yet again and discovered a perfect use within this production – the underskirt for Fanny’s

Act Three dress, which was being built. To coordinate with this dress, I designed a

purple bodice and overskirt for the main body of the dress that would coordinate nicely to

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the purple flowers and a green trim to pick up on the green leaves. My first fabric

shopping trip was to purchase fabric for the three men’s shirts being built, which were for

Charles, Dyer, and Hazlitt. While at two different Jo-Ann Fabrics stores, I also perused

the selection of fabrics for Fanny’s and Mary’s dresses. While unsuccessful in choosing

a fabric for Mary, I did find a couple of options for Fanny’s dress. I focused mostly on

different shades of purple textiles and found one fabric that I thought could work but was

not my first option. While searching, I came across a green floral that would look

beautiful with the yellow floral I had already chosen. I purchased both fabrics because I

had been set on using a purple but knew that the green floral would coordinate well and

look more period accurate. The green was chosen, and a gold trim that coordinated with

the fabric for the underskirt was used instead.

My second round of fabric shopping came during the week of February 14, 2016.

All of my fabric needed to be in the costume studio by the following Monday, so I had to

make some decisions for Mary’s Act One costume. While I did not find any options in

the couple Jo-Ann Fabrics locations I had previously visited, I went back out with fresh

eyes to a different location. I found a fabric for the dress and over dress that coordinated

extremely well together, even though neither was exactly what I had been looking for

previously; they were, however, the weights of fabric I needed for both pieces. The

brocade chosen for the overdress was very reminiscent of Chinese and eastern designs,

tying back again to Stokes’ concept.

While reorganizing our fabric stock, I was made further aware of the wonderful

fabrics we already had. I chose a plaid fabric for one of Charles’ vests from the donation

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we received and found a beautiful brocade in our stock, both of which fit well within his

green and brown color scheme. For his tailcoat, I was also able to choose a lovely forest

green wool from our wide-ranging stock of wools, and we also had linings in stock as

well. The only purchase I had to make for Charles’ builds was vest lining and buttons, all

of which I was easily able to find at Jo-Ann Fabrics.

Costume construction began the week of February 7, 2016, first with the men’s

shirts. We did not plan on making mock-ups but rather start with the actual shirt and

make alterations as necessary. The construction of all three shirts continued into the

following week, and the shirts were ready to fit by the end of the week. Construction

began on mock-ups for Mary’s dress and Fanny’s dress the week of February 14 with the

goal of mock-up fittings the following week. Builds for this production were assigned

slightly differently than other productions that go through our costume studio in that I, as

the designer, was also assigned two builds. This is unusual, but because of the light work

load for the previous two productions during the spring semester it was more feasible. I

built Hazlitt’s shirt because all three graduate students were assigned a shirt, and I built

Charles’ tailcoat because I requested a tailoring project to gain more knowledge and

experience in that area of construction. After getting Hazlitt’s shirt ready to fit, I began

work on Charles’ coat, which started with tracing the commercial sewing pattern I

purchased from Laughing Moon Mercantile, a company that specializes in historical

sewing patterns. Even this early in the process, I discovered the difficulties of being a

designer who is also building for the production. I expected tracing to take a longer

amount of time due to the large number of detailed and complicated pattern pieces, but I

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did not realize just how long it might take. Because I had two fittings that week, I also

had a certain amount of things to coordinate before and after each fitting to make sure

progress continued and work flowed smoothly, which included preparing projects for

other graduate students to work on and pulling each necessary costume item for each

fitting. I also worked with our practicum students on projects that came out of the fittings

such as labeling and changing buttons. Since mock-ups were also started this week, there

was a certain amount of communication that had to occur between the drapers and

stitchers and me. All of these things pulled me away from my own construction project

and limited the amount of time I had to focus on moving forward. The other builds,

however, moved forward at a good pace and stayed on schedule according to our

calendar and fittings.

Fittings began the week of February 14, 2016, a week ahead of our original

schedule. In that week, we fit the actors playing Emma and Hazlitt. Both fittings went

well, and we were able to move forward, looking to do minor alterations for both actors.

The week of February 21, 2016 was heavily scheduled with fittings because we were

under certain time restraints to return unused rental items as to not be charged for them

and also needed to be able to fit mock-ups and move forward on builds. Seven out of the

ten actors were scheduled for fittings, most of them an hour long because the amount of

pieces we needed to fit.

While it was a busy week, every fitting ran smoothly, most finishing ahead of

schedule. The schedule began with several of the male actors playing Coleridge, Dyer,

and De Quincey, all of whom had rental pieces to be fit. I received five options of vests

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for the actor playing Coleridge all being in various stages of wornness. Having

previously fit a tailcoat, a shirt, and a pair of pants on this actor, the focus of the fitting

was finding two to three vest options as well a pair of shoes that would fit and display the

character well. All five vests were rentals, two being from Costume Rentals at the

Guthrie Theatre and three being from Cleveland Playhouse. Because all of the vests fit

Lara acceptably well, the decision of which vests to use came down to which colors

would work best and fit my design. The first decision was easiest because the Guthrie

included a dark purple vest patterned with elephants. I knew that this would be the

perfect choice to put Lara in for Act One because his character quotes his newly written

poem, “Kubla Khan,” which refers to the Oriental themes mentioned in the director’s

concept. While the elephant pattern might not be visible to all audience members, the

overall pattern is organic and lends itself to Coleridge’s ever-changing nature. Stokes

agreed with this choice of this vest as well as a second vest in a lighter tone with added

sheen. This second vest was the first choice for Act Two because the distressing

necessary for the character would be more visible on a lighter-toned fabric. The actor

playing Dyer was also fit that same day. Because he is a larger man, I was unable to pull

any pieces from our stock for his costume, so I rented options from both Costume Rentals

at the Guthrie Theatre and Cleveland Playhouse. My initial plan was to use a dark brown

tailcoat and breeches from Costume Rentals and had only pulled options from Cleveland

Playhouse as backups. However, through the fitting process, I discovered that all of the

rental items from Costume Rentals, which included the tailcoat, breeches, and a vest,

were not feasible due to fit and condition, and I decided to use a tailcoat, breeches, and

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vest from Cleveland Playhouse and a vest from our stock in addition to the vest I

purchased. Stokes also visited the costume studio after fittings were finished to discuss

the options each actor had tried on and to see other options in person.

The following day we continued fittings with the actors playing De Quincey and

Fanny. The actor playing De Quincey had very few items to try on because his character

only has one costume for both acts he appears in, and these pieces were pulled from our

stock and rented from Costume Rentals. He is smaller in stature, making it difficult to

find clothing to fit. Fortunately, the coat and vest rented from Costume Rentals fit well

and coordinated with the shirt and pants I pulled from our stock. The fitting for the

actress playing Fanny ran equally as smoothly, with three rental dresses as Act Two

options, a mockup for her Act Three dress, and a wig. My first option for Act Two was

the best fitting and my top choice; however, it did require a certain amount of alterations

at the side seams to take in the bust. The mockup fit exceptionally, with only minor

adjustments needed to the style lines. The wig also fit and worked well with the hairstyle

I designed therefore merely needed to be styled.

The remainder of fittings for the week continued to run smoothly and quickly.

The schedule finished with the actresses playing Mary and Mrs. Kelly, on Thursday,

February 25 and the actor playing Charles, on Friday, February 26. The fitting for the

actress playing Mary was originally scheduled as a mockup fitting for her Act One dress

and overdress. However it was scheduled at a time that Graduate Teaching Associate

Sierra Johnson, who was draping and building the costume, was unavailable. Rather than

cancel the fitting, we fit undergarments and wigs and scheduled a fitting for the following

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week to fit her mockup. I pulled three wig options, one made of human hair and two that

were synthetic. My first choice was the one made of human hair because it was naturally

curly and would be a nice, classic look for Mary, and this wig also happened to be the

best fit and style for the actress. While we had a costume option for the actress playing

Mrs. Kelly that I pulled from our stock, I had also rented a couple options from Cleveland

Playhouse that were close in style to what I envisioned and would require fewer

alterations and additions of trim. A floor-length green jacket accompanied the first

option, a long sleeve dress made of embroidered rust-colored fabric, with jeweled

brooches ornamented both. I pulled a deep red turban from our stock to coordinate with

Mrs. Kelly’s costume, which she tried on with both dresses. The second dress, made of

gold sari border print fabric, also coordinated with the green jacket and turban, and the

actress felt more comfortable in this dress because it was more lightweight and allowed

for more movement. I believed both dresses were viable options and waited to receive

feedback from Stokes. The last fitting of the week was for purchased trousers, a built

shirt, and a tailcoat mockup for Charles. This fitting was a nice end to a busy week of

fittings. Very few alterations needed to be made to any of the items, and the builds

proceeded after this fitting. With Kearney in the fitting as well, we decided that it would

be best to go up a size in the pattern for this tailcoat in order to accommodate for space

taken up when the actual coat would be made out of wool and have padding and lining

instead of being merely a muslin mockup. This would give the actor more moving and

breathing room. Slight alterations to make adjustments in length were also required.

While a mockup for the coat was ready for the fitting, neither built vest had been started

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yet, so I borrowed a rental vest for fitting purposes that was an option intended for

Hazlitt. However, the vest fit the actor playing Charles so well and worked within his

color scheme, that I made the decision to use that in Act One and only his Act Two vest

would be built.

Another change was made to the build list during this week as well. As

previously mentioned, I had been unable to procure a dress for Act Three for Mary.

When work was resumed on Monday after the weekend, Kearney and Turk made the

decision to build this dress as well. Since Johnson was already building a dress for Mary,

the proposal was to adapt the pattern created, making less work in the long run.

However, this meant making a fabric decision quickly and then making a purchase that

same night. Opportunely, I had just purchased the rest of the fabric required the day

before and still had enough money on that purchase request to purchase fabric and

notions needed to build the Act Three dress. It was decided that since Johnson was

building a dress and overdress for Mary that Graduate Teaching Associate Sarah Fickling

would build the second dress based on Johnson’s pattern.

Because of the hectic fitting schedule, I was only able to find pockets of time to

progress on the tailcoat mockup I had started for Meyer. Since it was only a mockup,

only the shell of the coat was required, which made cutting and sewing much quicker.

While the pattern I chose was thorough and extensive, I discovered that the directions

included were not always as clear and concise as needed, which in some cases held me up

in the process. Because I had never made any kind of men’s coat prior to this, there was

a bit of trial and error in the process as well as examining similar regency tailcoats from

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our stock. Moving forward after the fitting, I needed to alter the pattern to provide better

fit of the tailcoat on the actor. All of these alterations were minor but took time, which

was also added to finishing a shirt I was building for the actor playing Hazlitt. A second

fitting for the actor playing Charles was scheduled for the Friday, March 4, and Kearney

and I made the decision to move forward in fashion fabric, the cashmere wool that the

actual costume piece would be made of, rather than constructing another muslin mockup.

By the middle of the week, I had mostly finished shirt for Hazlitt, but I had not made as

much progress on the tailcoat for Charles as was necessary. I had altered the pattern but

still needed to cut it out and assemble it the next day. This fitting was moved to

following week and went incredibly smoothly, allowing me to move forward in finishing

the coat in the remaining weeks before dress rehearsals began.

While the previous week was filled with fittings with most of the actors, the week

of February 29 had very few fittings. We began mockup fitting for Mary’s Act One dress

and overdress on Monday. This mockup did not fit as well as desired, but overall both

the dress and overdress flattered the actress and had the styles lines and designs that

Johnson and I had previously discussed. Because this actress carries a little more weight

in her upper body, the sleeves of the dress did not fit properly, and it was decided that it

would be best to do another mockup of the sleeves while proceeding with fashion fabric

for the body of the dress and overdress. The actor playing Hazlitt was scheduled for a

second fitting in order to fit rental options because unused items needed to be returned at

the beginning of the following week. His trousers and a vest had been altered, and I had

rented a tailcoat and overcoat from Costume Rentals and a vest and overcoat from

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Cleveland Playhouse. The vest from our stock that had been altered, which was to be

used in Act Two, was no longer an option because it was now too short. I had two other

vest options, one from our stock and one from Cleveland Playhouse, and while I had only

planned on using one, I had now hoped that they would both work. Fortunately, they

both fit, and I pulled cravats to coordinate with both. The other rental items where a bit

more challenging. The mint green overcoat from Cleveland Playhouse that was my first

choice for Erickson was much too large for him, so I was given no choice but to use to

black overcoat from Costume Rentals. I had not wanted to use much black at all in this

production, but sometimes it becomes necessary to make concessions. I had also hoped

to use a dark navy tailcoat from Costume Rentals because it was closest to what I had

rendered for the character of Hazlitt; however, it was too small. I reverted to the back-up

tailcoat I had pulled from our stock, which fit this actor well but did need some work to

make it look more pristine.

While all of my main costume purchases were made a couple weeks prior, all

accessories and wigs were due by March 4. During this week, I pushed to make final

decisions and purchases earlier rather than later. A few weeks prior I sourced hats for all

of the men and was able to purchase most of them from Gentleman’s Emporium, where I

had purchased the fall-front trousers, and I also purchased eyeglasses for Dyer, Mary, and

Charles from this same company. Turk helped me source the bicorn for Dyer, which

came from a company titled Hatcrafters, who hand makes most of their hats for each

order. These hats, as well as previously altered costumes pieces, were fit the week after

spring break.

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In the week following spring break, final fittings were scheduled for most of the

actors, with the remainder being scheduled for the following week. In these fittings, the

actors tried on any pieces that were altered to assess fit as well as any accessories that I

had pulled or purchased to coordinate with each costumes, such as cravats, hats, jewelry,

watches, and glasses; the goal was to see final looks for each character.

As previously mentioned, I had ordered a dress through Etsy for the actress

playing Mary that was scheduled to arrive at the end of February. However, through

mishaps such as issues with fabric and lost packages, I did not receive it until March 14.

This dress and Mary’s other two dresses were fit, all of which were moving toward being

finished. Even though this dress from Etsy was made according to the actress’s

measurements, it did not fit quite right, causing alterations to be made to the shape of the

skirt in order to be more flattering. While this alteration was achievable, the dress became

too short, and I had to devise a plan to accommodate for this unexpected alteration.

Through conversations with Turk, it was decided that I would purchase fabric that would

closely match so that an extension to the hem could be added. When shopping for fabric

at Jo-Ann Fabrics, I located the exact fabric used to construct this dress, making an

extension much more seamless than previously anticipated.

Other unexpected problems arose with the other custom dresses I had ordered

from other vendors on Etsy. As I mentioned, I purchased custom dresses for the actresses

playing Emma and Becky. When fitting the dress on the actress playing Emma, I

discovered that this custom dress was much too small through the back of the bodice,

causing limited mobility. This was unfortunate since the dress was made according to

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her measurements, but luckily, I had already planned to hem the dress from its full length

to a mid-calf length, giving the costume studio ample fabric to add extension panels for a

better fit. The dress ordered for the actress playing Becky also contained a certain

amount of surprises. I also received this dress much later than anticipated, causing her

fitting to be moved to the following week. When the dress did arrive, the color was not

what I had expected. When choosing the fabric through looking at pictures on a

computer screen, I thought I was picking a cotton fabric with cornflower blue and rust

stripes; however, the fabric was much different than what I had seen on my screen and

was actually a light blue and light pink. While a lovely color combination, it did not fit

for what I had envisioned for the character or the dramatic nature of the play. Turk was

able to dye the dress slightly in order to tone down these brighter colors, giving a look

much closer to what I had rendered. So while these dresses all brought their own issues,

through the work of the costume studio, each dress was made to work much better with

my design for the production.

In the week leading up to the first dress rehearsal on April 6, I had several

projects that I needed to complete in order to make sure each actor had each costume

piece necessary and that each costume piece was as complete as possible. While there

was still a week in between first dress and the first performance of the production, I

travelled to Brooklyn with the Department of Theatre immediately following the first

dress rehearsal, leaving me no time to complete any other projects over that weekend. I

strove to make each detail was in order and that all costumes were as complete as

possible. One of those projects included painting the fabric of Mary’s Act One dress. As

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mentioned previously, I chose to place a Greek wave motif as a border on the hem of

Mary’s Act One dress. Through searching through trims to adhere as well as

conversations with Kearney and Turk, we came to the decision that painting the pattern

would be the best option to keep the integrity of the dress intact. The fabric that I chose

was a very light weight fabric that draped nicely, and no matter how light weight a trim

that I could have chosen, sewing it in a curved pattern would weigh the dress down and

alter the silhouette as well. I did several paint tests for color, scale, and technique before

applying any paint to the actual dress. Once I was happy with my results, I began the

process of painting the wave pattern on the dress and completed it within about seven

hours, including time for preparation and drying. In addition to adding paint to this dress,

I still was in the process of completely the tailcoat for Charles. The actor playing Charles

was brought in for a final fitting the week prior to the first dress rehearsal, and all that

remained was many finishing details. Much of this required precise hand sewing, which

took more time, but I made good progress in the week of dress rehearsal, putting me on

schedule to finish by April 6.

Students and staff in the costume studio were primarily focused on putting the

finishing touches on the overall production during the week leading up to first dress

rehearsal. Conducting a first dress rehearsal in the middle of the week was unusual and

also shortened the time in which to finish and add details to the costumes. Because the

staff in the costume studio as well the practicum students were all producing focused and

efficient work, this shortened time frame did not cause any issues. First dress rehearsal

ran incredibly smoothly, with few alterations or additions to be made moving forward.

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Moving forward with dress rehearsals proved slightly challenging; however, I was

pleased with the outcome. As mentioned previously, the department scheduled a trip to

Brooklyn to attend the Royal Shakespeare Company’s productions of Richard II, Henry

IV Parts I and II, and Henry V. This trip followed immediately the first dress rehearsal,

and many of the cast, crew, and production team members, including myself, attending

this trip. I felt confident in leaving after first dress rehearsal that any of the notes

generated from that rehearsal could easily be accomplished upon my return on April 11.

However, I did run into a small problem when Stokes emailed me the following day

raising concerns, primarily with the wig chosen for the actress playing Mary. Stokes was

concerned that Mary’s wig, both style and color, was unattractive in comparison to

Fanny’s wig. Through communication in emails with Stokes, Kearney, Turk, and myself,

a new wig was able to be chosen and styled, making it ready to be worn for the second

dress rehearsal. Other small alterations were made in my absence, so when I returned I

was able to focus on notes that I specifically as the designer needed to address.

The remaining dress rehearsals brought only minor hiccups. The biggest changes

occurred with the makeup applications for certain characters and the shawl worn by the

actress playing Mary. Because the Thurber Theatre is a large theatre space, the actors

with more specialized makeup had to apply their makeup much heavier than many of

them were accustomed to doing. It was not until the final dress rehearsal that the makeup

for these actors was finally visible from the house. Aside from the makeup, the shawl

worn by the actress playing Mary caused a multitude of problems. This actress had

difficulties wearing a shawl on stage, so three options were tried before finding the one

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that worked best for everyone. Because she continually dropped the shawl, elastic bands

to be worn around the arms were stitched to the shawl in order to keep it on the actress’s

body. This alteration did not prove successful because the actress did not make a

conscious effort to keep the shawl wrapped around her body. The second option was to

have the actress wear the shawl around her shoulders and attach it in the front; this gave

her a range of motion without any concern for the shawl falling. However, the shawl did

fall off the actress’s shoulders, and she had difficulty pulling it back up gracefully. The

last alteration was to add snaps to the shawl and the shoulders of both dresses with which

she wore the shawl. This proved to be successful, and while this was not my first option,

I was able to still use the shawl as a part of the costume design and the actress was able to

wear it without further issues.

Other than these smaller issues, dress rehearsals ran smoothly, and only minor

alterations were made. The production previewed to the department students, staff, and

faculty on April 13, and public performances began on April 14.

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Chapter 5: An Evaluation of the Design

Working on this production of The Coast of Illyria as my thesis project has been

both a delight and a challenge. I greatly appreciate being able to combine my love of

English literature and theatrical costume design in this culmination of my MFA degree at

The Ohio State University. While it might be difficult at the moment to step back from

the process itself since the production is just now opening, these are my thoughts as of

now.

Writing a thesis document to supplement to the costume design of a production

while concurrently designing said production was most definitely the toughest portion of

this entire process. Finding a balance between designing and writing was difficult, and

then finding a balance between those and class work added another challenge. Having

deadlines for all three areas that were often close together gave me challenges in time

management. I also found that it at times it was difficult to give full focus to every aspect

of the design, my writing, and class projects, and I often felt behind in one or more of the

areas. While this situation was not ideal, I would say that writing about the process while

in the process made for a much richer, more developed chapter IV because I was able to

describe events and situations that happened as they were happening rather than having to

look back to notes from several months prior for this information.

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Looking back to the design process from the beginning, there are a few things I

wish had spent more time on or had done differently. The first would be starting my

research much earlier in the development of the design. I was first assigned to design

costumes for The Coast of Illyria in December of 2014, and production meetings did not

begin until October 2015. I could have better utilized this time in the interim to complete

in-depth research into the play and its characters as to have been much more fully

prepared early on, which would have freed up more time to focus on designing and

writing. Ultimately, I feel like I have a good grasp on these characters and the world they

live in, but I could have made the process easier on myself if I had completed research

before beginning production meetings. Secondly, I also could have spent more time

further researching women’s clothing styles in particular. While I am pleased with the

outcome of the costumes for Mary and Fanny specifically, I found many other appealing

styles of dresses after completing my final designs that I might have preferred to styles I

chose. The third thing I could have improved upon was communication in all areas.

Although communication was continually happening throughout the process, I could

have been stronger in the ways I communicated with the members of the costume studio

as well as the production team. In a couple fittings, a lack of communication seemed to

cause minor problems with the fit of certain constructed costumes. Many questions were

raised in the fittings concerning style lines and fit of the garments that could have been

answered prior to the fittings; however, I was not aware that these were questions that

needed to be answered. Part of that could be on the drapers not asking me questions

when they had them, but I could have also been more proactive in checking in with the

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drapers more consistently to clear up any confusion. I could have also been more

communicative with the Etsy sellers who made custom dresses for the production. While

I did converse with all of them heavily when placing orders, after receiving deadlines

from them, I trusted that those items would arrive as ordered on the assigned dates.

Although each dress from the different sellers I worked with did arrive within the

required time frame, each of these dresses was a cause of stress in my process for one

reason or another. Understanding better now how to work with these sellers making

custom clothing will help in my use of Etsy sellers for future productions. Lastly, my

communication could have been stronger in regards to the use of rehearsal costume items

during the rehearsal process. Because I provided many items early on, I assumed that

they would be introduced in the earlier rehearsals so that the actors could grow

accustomed to using certain items such as hats, coats, and shawls. However, I should

have made a stronger emphasis on the need for the actors to work with these items before

getting to dress rehearsals because I did run into some challenges once the actors were in

full costume. While the men were all adept at adjusting to using hats and coats

immediately, the actress playing Mary had difficulties using a shawl while on stage, and I

think that could have been resolved if she had rehearsed with one from the beginning.

Despite the fact that these challenges arose and I could have dealt with each of them

differently, none of them affected the production detrimentally.

Overall, I am extremely pleased with the outcome of the costume design of The

Coast of Illyria. I could not have asked for a better production team to work with, and

everyone in the costume studio went above and beyond to make every single costume

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look exactly as I designed it. This process has been rewarding in a number of ways. I

feel as though I have grown as a designer, and I have also increased my knowledge of

styles and construction methods used during the Regency time period. I have a better

understanding of how well I can multi-task when given multiple projects simultaneously

and how I can better give the proper focus to each. Looking at the overall stage picture

itself is rewarding as well. I adhered closely to my color palette abstracted from the

inspiration painting by John Martin, and these colors work well within the world of the

play. Communication was strong between the other designers and myself, giving no

surprises when all the design elements came together in the first dress rehearsal. We all

worked well together and all had a clear understanding of the world of The Coast of

Illyria, presenting a cohesive, very lovely production.

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References

Aaron, J. (n.d.) Mary Lamb (1764-1847). Retrieved from http://www.charleslambsociety.com/c&m2.html

Biography.com Editors. (n.d.) Dorothy Parker biography. Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/people/dorothy-parker-9433450#profile

Courtney, W. F. (n.d.). Charles Lamb. Retrieved from http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/charles-lamb

Kinney, A.F. (1990). Introduction. In D. Parker & R. Evans, The Coast of Illyria (pp.1-73). Iowa City: University of Iowa Press.

Mary Lamb. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/mary-lamb

Parker, D., & Evans, R. (2016). The coast of Illyria (J. Schlueter & C. Bellomy, adapters). Columbus, OH: The Ohio State University.

Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/samuel-taylor-coleridge

Samuel Taylor Coleridge. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/samuel-taylor-coleridge

Stokes, S. (2015). Director’s concept for The Coast of Illyria. The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH.

Wu, D. (n.d.). Charles Lamb (1775-1834). Retrieved from http://www.charleslambsociety.com/c&m.html

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Appendix A: Director’s Concept

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Figure 9. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 1

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Figure 10. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 2

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Figure 11. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 3

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Figure 12. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 4

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Figure 13. Director's Concept for The Coast of Illyria p. 5

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Appendix B: Costume Plot

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THE COAST OF ILLYRIA The Ohio State University

by Dorothy Parker and Ross Evans Spring 2016adapted by Jennifer Schlueter and Cece BellomySetting: London, England Director: Shilarna StokesTime: early autumn, 1813 Costume Designer: Rebekah Priebe

A. PRINCIPAL MEN:

1. Charles Lamb I – shirt, vest, trousers, shoes, socks Act One2. Charles Lamb II – tailcoat, shirt, vest, cravat, trousers Act Two3. Charles Lamb III – remove jacket and cravat, add banyan Act Three4. Coleridge I –tailcoat, shirt, vest, cravat, trousers, shoes, socks, hat, overcoat Act One5. Coleridge II – vest, cravat Act Two6. Coleridge III – vest, cravat Act Three

B. SECONDARY MEN:

7. Dyer I – tailcoat, shirt, vest, cravat, breeches, stockings, shoes Act One8. Dyer II – vest, cravat, shawl, hat, one shoe? Act Two9. Dyer III – vest, cravat Act Three10. Hazlitt I – tailcoat, shirt, vest, cravat, trousers, boots, socks, hat, overcoat Act Two11. Hazlitt II – vest, cravat Act Three12. De Quincey I – tailcoat, vest, shirt, trousers, shoes, socks, hat Act Two-Three

C. PRINCIPAL WOMEN:

13. Fanny I –dress, shoes, tights, petticoat, corset, jewelry Act One14. Fanny II –dress, jewelry Act Two15. Fanny III –dress, jewelry Act Three16. Mary I – dress, overdress, shawl, shoes, tights, petticoat, jewelry, bonnet Act One17. Mary III – dress, jewelry Act Two18. Mary IV – dress, jewelry Act Three

D. SECONDARY WOMEN:

19. Becky I – dress, apron, cap, tights, petticoat, corset, shoes, jewelry Act One-Three20. Emma I – dress, pantaloons, tights, shoes, jewelry Act One21. Emma II – dress Act Two22. Emma III – dress Act Three23. Mrs. Kelly I – dress, jacket, tights, petticoat, corset, shoes, jewelry Act Two

Figure 14. Costume Plot

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Appendix C: Costume Budget Estimates

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Title: The Coast of Illyria

Allotted: $4,140.00

= = = = = = =Character Act Costume

PieceSource Notes AMOUNT

BALANCE Labor

= = = = = = =$4,140.00

Charles Lamb

all shirt build $ 29.96

One pants purchase $ 125.60 all socks pull $ 8.00 all shoes $ 50.00 all jacket build $ 75.00 One vest build $ 20.00 One cravatTwo-Three

vest build $ 20.00

Two-Three

pants purchase $ 125.60

banyan????? $ 250.00 Two-Three

cravat

Coleridge all jacket pull $ -all shirt pull $ -all pants pull $ -all socks pull $ 8.00 all shoes $ 50.00 all overcoat rental $ 50.00 all hat pull/buy $ 80.00 One, Three

vest rental $ 15.00

One, three

cravat

Two vest rental $ 15.00 Two cravat

Dyer all jacket rental $ 50.00 all breeches rental $ 25.00

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all shirt build $ 33.16 all tights purchase $ 30.00

all shoes $ 50.00 all glasses $ 35.00 One vest pull it's an option $ -One cravatTwo vest buy etsy $ 84.00 Two cravatTwo shawl pull $ -

Three cravathat $ 75.00

Hazlitt all shirt build $ 38.36 all jacket rental $ 50.00 all socks $ 8.00 all boots pull $ 100.00 all pants $ 125.60 Two vest pull/buy $ 160.00 Two cravatThree vest pull/buy $ 160.00 Three cravat

hat $ 80.00 overcoat

De Quincey

all shirt pull $ -

all jacket rental $ 50.00 all pants pull $ -all socks $ 8.00 all shoes $ 50.00 all vest rental $ 15.00

hat $ 80.00 Fanny Kelly

all tights $ 10.00

all shoes $ 70.00 One dress purchase etsy, Joann $ 128.38 One jewelryOne reticuleTwo dress pull TRIM/ALTER

!$ 50.00

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Two jewelry

Three dress build Chelsea/RT $ 76.40 Three jewelry

wig $ 75.00 Mary Lamb

all shawl

all tights $ 10.00 all shoes $ 40.00 One dress build $ 75.00 One bonnet $ 80.00 One gloves pullOne jewelry pullOne overgown build $ 75.00 Two dress purchase etsy $ 188.00

Two jewelry pull

Two fichu purchase etsy $ 20.00

Three dress rental $ 50.00

Three jewelry

wig $ 75.00

Becky all dress purchase etsy $ 127.00

all apron pull

all tights $ 10.00

all shoes pull/buy $ 40.00

all jewelry

all cap pull $ -

fichu pull $ -

Emma all tights purchase $ 10.00

all shoes $ -

all pantaloons pull $ -

all apron pull $ -

One dress $ 124.00

One jewelry

Two dress $ 124.00

Two jewelry

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Three dress maybe doesn't need

Three jewelry

Mrs. Kelly

Two reticule

Two dress pull ALTER!

Two jewelry

Two tights pull $10

Two shoes pull $0

turban w/hair

build/craft $30

PATTERNS $ 107.44

-

Spent $ 3,834.50 0

Remaining $ 305.50

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Appendix D: Research and Preliminary Sketches

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A

B

C

Figure 15. Research for Charles: A Allan Melville by John Rubens Smith, B Men's Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1812, C Portrait of Charles Lamb from The Charles Lamb Society

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Figure 16. Charles Preliminary Design

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B

A

C D

Figure 17. Research for Mary: A Woman's Dress c. 1805-1810 from Philadelphia Museum of Art, B A Woman with Two Children Wearing Kashmir Paisley Shawls by Alfred Edward 1815-1820, C Maria Shaum by Jacob Eicholtz, D Morning Dress 1810-20 from the Metropolitan Muse

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Figure 18. Mary Preliminary Design

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A B

D

C

Figure 19. Research for Fanny: A Portrait of a lady wearing a Kashmir Shawl, B 1810 La Mode Illustree, C 1818 - Ackermann's Repository Series 2 Vol 6 - September Issue, D Portrait of Fanny Kelly

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Figure 20. Fanny Preliminary Design

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A B

C D

Figure 21. Research for Mrs. Kelly: A Portrait of a Lady by Louis-Leopold Boily, B Fashion Plate depicting Afternoon Dress for 1800 located at Scripps College, C Fashion Plate depicting Evening Dresses, 1810 located at Scripps College, D Portrait de Femme en Robe by Francois-Joseph Kinson

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Figure 22. Mrs. Kelly Preliminary Design

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A B

C

Figure 23. Research for Dyer: A Portrait of George Beau Brummel by Robert Dighton, B Man's Brown Velvet Coat 1811 at The Charleston Museum, C Henry Moyes by John Russell

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Figure 24. Dyer Preliminary Design

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A B

C

Figure 25. Research for Coleridge: A Men's Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1810, B Men's Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1819, C Portrait of Samuel Taylor Coleridge from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

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Figure 26. Coleridge Preliminary Design

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A B

C D

Figure 27. Research for Becky: A Progress of the Toilet by James Gillray, B The early nineteenth-century maid by William Brocas, C Charlotte Corday by Francois-Seraphin Delpech, D Kinderfruhstuk by Albert Anker

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Figure 28. Becky Preliminary Design

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A B

C

Figure 29. Research for Emma: A Two Printed Cotton Infant Dresses, 1810 from Augusta Auctions, B Children's Fashion Plate from Journal des Dames et des Modes, 1813, C A Woman with Two Children wearing Kashmir Paisley Shawls by Alfred Edward 1815-1820

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Figure 30. Emma Preliminary Design

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A

B

C

Figure 31. Research for Hazlitt: A Portrait of Franz Shubert (1797-1828), Austrian Composer, Aged 17, circa 1814, B Men's Fashion Plate from Journal de Dames et des Mode 1811, C Self Portrait of William Hazlitt

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Figure 32. Hazlitt Preliminary Design

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A

B

C

Figure 33. Research for De Quincey: A Portrait of a Boy by Nicholas-Bernard Lepicie, B Fashion Plate from Costume Parisien 1813, C A Young Peasant Boy by Jean-Baptiste Greuze

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Figure 34. De Quincey Preliminary Design

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Appendix E: Final Renderings

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Figure 36. Charles Acts Two-Three

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Figure 37. Mary Act One

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Figure 38. Mary Act Two

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104Figure 39. Mary Act Three

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105Figure 40. Fanny Act One

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106Figure 41. Fanny Act Two

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107Figure 42. Fanny Act Three

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108Figure 43. Mrs. Kelly Act Two

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Figure 44. Dyer Acts One-Three

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110Figure 45. Coleridge Acts One-Three

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111Figure 46. Becky Acts One-Three

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112Figure 47. Emma Acts One-Three

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Figure 48. Hazlitt Acts Two-Three

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114Figure 49. De Quincey Acts Two-Three

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Appendix F: Production Photos

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116Figure 50. Production Photo - Charles and Fanny Act One

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117Figure 51. Production Photo - Emma and Becky Act One

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Figure 52. Production Photo - Dyer, Mary, and Emma Act One

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119Figure 53. Production Photo - Charles and Mary Act One

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Figure 54. Production Photo - Mary and Fanny Act Two

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Figure 55. Production Photo - Charles, Mrs. Kelly, and Fanny Act Two

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Figure 56. Production Photo - Charles, Coleridge, and Mary Act Two

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Figure 57. Production Photo - Charles, De Quincey, Emma, Mrs. Kelly, Fanny, Mary, Coleridge, and Hazlitt Act Two

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Figure 59. Production Photo - Charles and Fanny Act Three